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My approach

What interests me most

I’ve always been interested in developing people and in understanding what makes them tick. More and more in my work, I’m seeking to understand not only what drives my clients but what has wounded them in the past. Then we can have a conversation about what might be holding them back, in order to find out how they can move forward more confidently.

So I see myself as a trusted confidante and guide through troubled times. My role is to walk alongside my clients while offering support and sometimes challenge. From my own experience of counselling as a client I have received profound acceptance of who I am and what I need. I believe it’s a genuinely healing experience.

My credentials

I have practised as a counsellor/psychotherapist for over 10 years, so now I have gained a wealth of experience and knowledge in order to fulfil the accreditation criteria for multiple professional bodies.

I also hold a clear record, checked by the Disclosure Bureau Service (formerly known as a CRB check).

I am also registered with several insurance companies, including Bupa, Cigna, Simply Health, PruHealth, WPA, Allianz, Aviva. So please contact me if you’d like counselling to be funded by your insurer.

I have worked on behalf of these organisations providing counselling through Occupational Health or through the employee assistance programme (EAP): Wiltshire Council, Wiltshire Police, Wiltshire Fire Brigade.

In my work with serving forces personnel and military veterans, I have provided counselling funded by: Walking With The Wounded as part of their Head Start programme; Help for Heroes. I am also part of the support team for Dare To Live, a veterans’ charity providing equine-facilitated courses for veterans making the sometimes difficult transition to civilian life.

Trauma therapy

Sarah has trained in various approaches to treating trauma, including BEPP (Brief Eclectic Psychotherapy for Psychotraumatology), and the evidence-based protocol of CPT (Cognitive Processing Therapy) which falls within NICE guidelines for Trauma-Focused CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy). Her hypnotherapy and NLP qualifications equip her with imagery-based approaches to treating trauma, including IRRT (Imagery Rescripting Reprocessing Therapy). She has a wide range of working therapeutically with trauma survivors, including:

childhood sexual abuse,

rape and sexual assault,

developmental trauma (childhood emotional neglect or abuse),

military veterans and serving members of the armed forces (Sarah has provided therapy programmes funded by Walking With The Wounded, Help 4 Heroes, The Dare To Live Trust),

serving members of the armed forces or emergency services (Sarah has undertaken therapy programmes either privately-funded or through Employee Assistance Programmes including private health insurance schemes for employees of the Metropolitan Police Service, Wiltshire Fire Service, Wiltshire Police, Gloucestershire Police).

Trauma therapy usually involves imagery rescripting to process intrusive memories such as flashbacks or nightmares, along with cognitive approaches to restructure memories and beliefs: all so that the survivor is better informed and resourced to live with the effect of the trauma, moving towards a future that is more manageable and calmer.

She was also invited by one of her former clients to contribute a chapter to his book describing his recovery journey from ritual childhood sexual abuse during his childhood. For a free download of this chapter click here. The book A Small Boy Smiling by Matt Carey is available on Amazon, narrating his long and courageous journey through recovery towards helping others. However, you might prefer to support him by buying the book through his website www.mattcareybooks.com

The chapter was endorsed in an unsolicited testimonial by another former client:

Sarah has been my therapist for 6 years.Her insight,wisdom & belief in me has facilitated a level of recovery & freedom I had considered unattainable.She is a real treasure & continues to be an integral part of my wellbeing. I highly recommend this written piece by her 😊 https://t.co/vER7WQst3V

My background

The start of my journey towards offering counselling in Malmesbury was benefiting from counselling myself about 20 years ago for the first time. Then I wanted to share the value of what I’d learned, so I could offer to others the kind of interactive support that I found so valuable. After completing a three-year training and started practising over 15 years ago now. Since then I’ve been awarded further qualifications and accreditations by a number of therapy associations. So you can be sure you’ll be speaking to someone who’s a qualified professional, committed to working ethically and confidentially.

Before starting this kind of work, my previous career was in advertising as a client account manager for 15 years. I worked for BBDO, a global agency network, in the UK, Europe and USA, for clients including Sainsbury’s in London, E&J Gallo Wineries in San Francisco, then latterly running GE’s corporate campaigns across the EMEA region. So I understand the demands of working in a fast-paced environment in a demanding yet skilful role for a notable company.

My professional status

Professional memberships:

Accredited member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP): 541524

Accredited member of the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapy (COSRT): 2404

Accredited member of the National Council of Psychotherapists (NCP): 202502.

Accredited member of the Federation of Drug and Alcohol Professionals (FDAP): 1364

Executive Coach, Member of the Association for Coaching (ACUK)

Member of the UK Psychological Trauma Society and European Society for Trauma Stress Studies

BA (Hons) in Social and Political Science, University of Cambridge 1989.

SPEAKER EVENTS AND CORPORATE WORK

From time to time I’ve been asked to present a seminar or workshop as CPD (Continuous Professional Development) for teams in-house or conference attendees. Client companies have included financial institutions and law firms in particular.

Topics have included:

Dealing with difficult or emotional clients,

Personality clashes at work,

What’s your poison: identifying addiction,

The science of stress (physical symptoms and neurology),

Building resilience at work,

Archetypes suitable for collaborative law.

I love this kind of work, so if you think I might be a good presenter for your team or conference, do get in touch.

was last modified: October 21st, 2018 by Sarah

About Myself

The start of my journey towards offering counselling in Malmesbury was benefiting from counselling myself about 15 years ago for the first time. Then I wanted to share the value of what I’d learned, so I could offer to others the kind of interactive support that I found so valuable...